Two Middle East diplomats with knowledge of the negotiations said Oman had agreed to the framework of a deal with Iran to temporarily reopen the Strait of Hormuz. An Iranian government official linked to the deal described the mechanism: commercial vessels would enter the Persian Gulf through an Iranian-controlled route and exit through a route controlled by Oman. Neither side described what remains unresolved, and neither Muscat nor Tehran commented officially. Iran’s deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi said the two sides were close to finalising a framework after more than three weeks of talks, with broad agreement on inbound and outbound routes.

[MS NOW] [CNN]

Every Iranian statement of the day carried the same qualifier. Gharibabadi warned the agreement would not automatically reopen the waterway. Iran’s state news agency reported the two sides were close to new arrangements but not a full reopening. And the foreign ministry restated the precondition logged on Day 159: "the factors making the Strait of Hormuz insecure still exist on the part of the United States, particularly the naval blockade and other aggressive and threatening actions against Iran and its interests." The Associated Press assessment stands — a deal is likely contingent on Washington lifting the blockade, and the administration has ruled out any arrangement cementing Iranian control of the strait.

[CNN] [CBS] [NBC/AP]

A US official set out Washington’s reading of the temporary routes: "no approvals or permissions and no tolls or charges," adding that the strait is an international waterway and no party controls the lanes or the ability to transit them. That formulation is the crux — the framework routes vessels through a lane Iran controls, while the United States denies any party controls the lanes. Trump has repeatedly said he will not permit Iran to charge transit fees.

[MS NOW] [PBS/AP]

Iran’s parliament speaker and top negotiator accused Trump of "theater diplomacy" as Washington and Tehran again gave sharply conflicting accounts of whether US-Iran talks were happening at all; Iran continues to deny direct negotiations. Trump said a lot of progress had been made and suggested an announcement could come soon, while Vice President Vance warned that negotiations with Tehran would "be messy." A senior Gulf official put the odds of an Iran-Oman deal landing by Friday at 50-50. Trump separately dismissed reports that the Pentagon is running low on munitions, and the Treasury lifted sanctions on three Iran-linked companies while saying the move signalled no policy shift.

[CNN] [CBS] [PBS/AP]

MarineTraffic data showed at least seven commercial ships passing through the strait over 24 hours — six moving into the Persian Gulf, five cargo ships and one tanker, and one cargo ship exiting into the Gulf of Oman. Against a waterway that once carried a fifth of the world’s oil and gas, that is a trickle, but it is measurable movement while the framework is still unsigned.

[CNN]

Houthi missile and drone attacks struck Yemeni government army positions — a camp in the al-Ruwaik area of Marib province, and camps in the Al-Abr and Al-Wadiah areas of Hadramawt near the Saudi border. One missile hit troops during morning formation. Casualty reporting varies by source and is unresolved: two medical sources told AFP at least 38 troops were killed and 29 wounded; a military source said at least 45 were killed or wounded at the Marib camp alone; another military source put the toll at 58 killed. The Houthis claimed a large-scale operation against Saudi troops and said they had killed 45. It is among the deadliest days of Yemen’s war in four years, and it confirms the ground front the group opened when it upended the 2022 truce last month. Saudi Arabia separately told CNN it is bracing for multiple coordinated attacks by Iraqi militias working with the Houthis.

[CBS/AFP] [Al Jazeera] [BBC] [NYT] [CNN]

Israeli attacks wounded eight people in southern Lebanon around Tyre despite the Israel-Lebanon talks that moved to Rome, with further strikes reported after Israeli military fatalities; this tracker logged the Tyre strike across two ingestion windows and records eight wounded once. In Gaza, UNICEF said one child has been killed per day since the ceasefire began. Logged as secondary theater.

[Al Jazeera] [BBC] [Al Jazeera]

Tracker status holds at WAR RESUMED. Day 160 produces the most concrete diplomatic architecture of the war — a named mechanism, agreed by the mediator, with routes and control assigned — and simultaneously the clearest statement that it is not a reopening: Iran says the strait stays insecure while the US blockade stands, and Washington says no party controls the lanes the framework assigns. Seven ships moved. Meanwhile the war’s newest front produced its deadliest day, and Riyadh is preparing for coordinated attacks from two directions. Status changes when the strait opens.